Bar Group Calls For Death Penalty Ban
The American Bar Association is calling on Kentucky to suspend executions, saying there are too many errors in the system.
The association, which helps set ethical standards for attorneys, Wednesday released a two-year study of Kentucky’s capital punishment system. The study is part of an ABA national program calling for a nationwide moratorium until problems are corrected.
The ABA’s Kentucky study found that more than 60 percent of capital convictions in the state had been overturned. It also concluded the state needs tighter regulations on the preservation of evidence and measures to ensure the mentally disabled aren’t executed.
The ABA has also recommended suspension in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee. It has also studied Arizona, Florida and Pennsylvania.
Kentucky executions are already on hold pending the outcome of a case in Franklin Circuit Court.
